Selene and Thena stepped inside, and the Copper Hearth's warmth hit them as the door closed behind them.

  Afternoon light faded into twilight as the sun sank behind the Veilspine Range. Storm clouds gathered at the peaks, dark masses rolling westward, their darkness creeping toward the Copper Hearth Inn.

  Selene's eyes swept across the inn's interior.

  Scholars hunched over scrolls at corner tables. A merchant argued with an apprentice near the hearth. A woman in a blue cloak sat alone at a small table. The inn workers moved among the patrons with practiced efficiency.

  And there in the far corner, in the table she and Eldric always claimed, sat Selis. Her silver hair caught the light, though the dark cloak the innkeeper had given her was pulled high around her shoulders, the hood drawn forward to shadow her face. Her hands rested flat on the table, perfectly still. Her eyes were closed.

  Something in Selene went still.

  That table. The one she and Eldric always claimed.

  She could still see him sitting there with his silver beard, sharp gray eyes bright with excitement. She could still hear his laugh when he'd pressed the watch into her hand.

  "A tower you can carry."

  And now she stood here wearing his brother's face, about to sit in his place, about to lie to the one person who had loved Aldric the most.

  Beside her, Thena's breath hitched. "Is that—?"

  "Come," Selene said quietly. "Let me introduce you."

  They crossed the inn, unaware of the eyes following them. Scholars glanced up from their books, and the innkeeper gave a small nod of recognition as they passed.

  As they approached the table, Selis's head tilted slightly, not turning toward them, but acknowledging their presence somehow.

  Selene stopped beside the table. Thena hung back slightly, uncertain.

  "Selis," Selene said softly.

  Selis's lips curved into a small, serene smile. Her eyes remained closed.

  "I trust you found what you were seeking?"

  "I did." Selene gestured toward Thena. "This is... my daughter. Thena."

  The words tasted like ash.

  Thena stepped forward, studying Selis with open curiosity and concern. "Hello. Are you alright?"

  "I am well," Selis replied, her voice carrying calm certainty. "Better than well. I am blessed."

  Thena's brow furrowed. She glanced at Selene, then back at Selis. "Father said we'd find answers here. Are you...?"

  "Please," Selene interrupted. "Sit. She’ll explain."

  They sat down. Thena settled beside her, close enough that their arms nearly touched. Across from them, Selis remained perfectly still, hands flat on the worn wood. In the shadow of the hood, a faint glow warmed her features.

  "The innkeeper was very kind," Selis said, her fingers brushing the cloak's edge. "When I asked for a change of clothes, he gave me this. Said it belonged to a scholar who never claimed it." She paused, her smile widening slightly. "And he asked no questions when I requested the corner table. Simply brought me water and said to rest as long as needed."

  "He’s a good man. He and Eldric were… friends," Selene reminisced.

  Selis tilted her head, as if listening to something beyond the conversation. Then she spoke:

  "When I first opened my eyes after what happened at the Vault, blood fell like tears. It soaked my clothes, dripped onto stone, marked every step I took."

  Thena tensed, eyes widening with alarm.

  Selis raised a hand slowly to her face, fingers tracing the line of her closed eyelids.

  "But I discovered something while we traveled back from the ruins. When I close my eyes—truly close them, surrender my sight completely—the bleeding stops."

  Silence fell across the table.

  "It... stops?" Thena asked.

  "Completely." Selis's smile turned serene, almost beatific. "Not a single drop falls. As long as I keep them closed, I remain unmarked."

  "But… why keep them closed if you can't see?"

  "Because I believe it is a test," Selis said simply. "Faith demands blindness. To be worthy of the divine, one must first surrender mortal sight." She paused, her closed eyes turning unerringly toward Selene. "Yet I still see. Not with my eyes, but with something deeper." Her fingers moved from her eyelids to rest over her heart. "To walk the path laid before me, I must trust in what I cannot see."

  Selene watched her across the table—this woman who'd witnessed her transformation, who'd been marked by her blood-tears, who'd devoted herself completely to her.

  "There's something else," Selis said quietly, her fingers drumming once against the table. "We're being observed."

  Selene's attention sharpened. "What?"

  "Four individuals. Scattered throughout the inn. They've been watching since I arrived." Her expression remained serene. "Casual, but consistent. One just left. Three remain."

  Thena glanced around nervously. "Where? Who—"

  "Don't look," Selene commanded quietly. She kept her look on Selis. "You're certain?"

  "Yes. I know they are there. The way a river knows the stones in its path."

  Selene exhaled slowly. "Are they a threat?"

  "I do not know. They observe but make no move. They do not feel hostile. Simply... attentive for now."

  "What happened at the ruins?" Thena asked, her voice trembling. "The Baron's men, the Athenaeum—it's rumored no one made it out. That the whole camp burned." She looked between them, confusion and fear mixing. "But you're here. Both of you. How—?"

  Selene met Thena's eyes. "We were at the excavation. At the main site. But we'd gone deeper, into sections most of the camp hadn't reached yet."

  "The new chamber they found?"

  Selene nodded. "And beyond it. There were passages, older. We found artifacts covered in symbols we didn't recognize." She gestured toward Selis. "She was helping document what we discovered."

  "And then?"

  Selis spoke: "I looked at something I shouldn't have. An artifact. The moment I examined it directly..." Her hand touched where the tears had fallen. "I began to bleed. From here. Like tears, but endless."

  "What kind of artifact does that?" Thena breathed.

  "We don't know," Selene said. "That's why we were trying to get back, to find healers, scholars who might understand. But then we saw the smoke... then fire."

  She paused, letting the weight settle.

  "We couldn't risk going to the Athenaeum directly. Not with her bleeding like that. Not with guards everywhere asking questions. So we came here—somewhere safe, somewhere familiar—to figure out our next move."

  Thena absorbed this slowly, her eyes drifting between them. Her fingers lifted toward her mouth, catching at her thumbnail nervously.

  "Were Eldric and Selene at the camp? When it burned?"

  The question landed hard. Selene's hands curled into fists beneath the table.

  Selis spoke before she could. "Yes. They were there. I saw them before we left for the new chamber."

  "And—do you know what happened to them? If they—"

  "I don't know," Selis said simply. "When the fires came, by the time we returned... everything was…. burning"

  Thena's hands pressed flat against the table.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  "Then we have to go back! Right now! We have to search for them!"

  "Thena—"

  "I know it's dangerous… I know the fires destroyed everything. But Father, if there's even a chance they're still alive—" Her voice cracked. "We can't just abandon them."

  "The Baron isn’t letting anyone reach the excavation," Selene said carefully. "No one’s allowed near it. And you heard Selis. We’re being watched here too." She gestured subtly around the inn. "Every street. We can’t just walk out of town."

  Thena's hands clenched. "Then what do we do? We can't just give up on them!"

  Selis's head tilted. "There may be another way."

  Both turned to her.

  "The ruins spread beneath the valley. Far older than Veilmouth. Far deeper than anyone has mapped." Her closed eyes seemed to focus on something only she could sense. "Even here. I can almost feel it."

  "Feel what?"

  "Movement." Selis turned her face toward the floorboards. "Water doesn’t just flow through the riverbed. It moves beneath the crust of the city, carved long before the Baron’s ancestors laid the first stone."

  "What, like mysterious channels?" Thena said, eyes widening. "Professor Halvern always said the ruins extend below us."

  Selene’s hand moved unconsciously to the watch beneath Aldric’s coat, pressing against the hard brass outline. Her thumb traced the single, sharp letter engraved into the back of the casing.

  E.

  The memory struck her with the force of a blow—the damp chill of the Lowtown square, the darkness of the pit, and that same letter carved into the stone rim, faint but deliberate.

  "The well," Selene breathed, the pieces locking together. "In the center of Lowtown."

  "The old public well?" Thena asked, confused.

  "It wasn't just a water source." Selene’s fingers tightened around the watch, the metal biting into her palm. "There is a carving on the rim. The letter E. The same script he used on... on his journals." She stopped herself before she said on my watch. "He insisted we drink from it. He called it 'better water.' "He wasn’t talking about taste, I think—he was telling me it came from somewhere else."

  Selis’s smile widened. "The well is the access point. We follow the underground river through the dark. It will lead us back to the ruins."

  "So we go into the well," Thena said, gaining strength. "Follow the river. Find our way back to the excavation from below."

  She gripped her father's hand. "We'll find them. Both of them."

  "Some paths lead away," Selis said softly, "and some lead back to where you began."

  Selene drew breath to respond when—

  Laughter. Light footsteps.

  Ryn and Faye burst through the back door, faces flushed with afternoon play. They wove between tables, dodging a patron's outstretched leg, giggling as they ran.

  Straight toward the corner table.

  "Mister! Mister!" Ryn skidded to a stop beside the table, clutching paper covered in numbers. "We did it! Six and four—just like you showed us!"

  Faye appeared beside him, breathless and proud. "We made faces! Ten of them! All different!"

  Selene's stomach lurched. They think I'm Eldric.

  "That's... wonderful," she managed.

  Ryn's excitement faltered. He tilted his head, squinting up at her. The same corner table. A scholar. But something... off.

  "Wait." He stepped closer, studying. "You look different. Your beard's not... And your voice sounds wrong."

  Faye tugged his sleeve, whispering. "Maybe he's sick?"

  "But his face—"

  "Ryn. Faye." Their mother’s voice cut across the room. "That’s enough."

  Ryn flushed red with embarrassment. "S-sorry, mister. I thought you were someone else."

  He grabbed Faye's hand and hurried toward the back exit.

  Selene watched them go, something hollow settling in her chest.

  Thena squeezed her hand beneath the table, offering comfort to her father.

  Then the inn's main door banged open.

  Five soldiers pushed through, bearing the Baron’s faded insignia, weapons ready. The lead soldier, a strong man with a weathered face, raised his hand for silence.

  "By order of Baron Arvane," he called out, voice carrying across the suddenly quiet inn. "We're searching for fugitives responsible for the fires at the ruins. Nobody moves until we've searched this fine establishment."

  The inn went still. Murmurs died. Patrons froze mid-conversation.

  The soldiers spread out. One stopped beside the merchant. "Name?"

  "Ervin. I've got—"

  "Stay put."

  Another approached the apprentices near the window. "You two. Where were you this morning?"

  "At the Athenaeum," one stammered. "We've been in lecture all day—"

  "Witnesses?"

  "Professor Cecil—he can vouch—"

  The soldier grunted and continued.

  Selene’s heart began to race, but she kept her posture relaxed, one hand resting casually on the table. Beside her, Thena had gone rigid. Across from them, Selis remained perfectly still.

  A sixth figure entered behind the soldiers, a woman in a servant’s dress, her hair pulled beneath a simple cap. She moved between the soldiers with tired irritation, clearly pulled from her work.

  Her eyes drifted past the merchant. Past the apprentices. Past the woman in blue cloak.

  Then stopped on the corner table.

  She squinted at Aldric's weathered face. Took a step closer. Studied harder.

  Recognition dawned, mixed with exasperated disbelief.

  "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."

  The lead soldier turned. "What?"

  She pointed at Selene. "That one. Same dumb soldier who ran through the manor fire this morning with the blood-cryin' woman. Disappeared into the smoke like a ghost."

  She gestured emphatically. "Told the Captain he'd turn up somewhere stupid, didn't I? And here he is—sittin' bold as brass, probably forgot he's supposed to be runnin'."

  The soldiers' hands moved to their weapons.

  Selene stood slowly, carefully. One hand gestured for Thena and Selis to stay seated.

  The lead soldier stepped forward. "Don't move. You're wanted for—"

  "Stand down."

  The voice cut through like cold steel.

  The door opened again. Three figures entered—dark coats tailored with stark elegance.

  Mauldric and Isadora Ardent at the front.

  Behind them, a third figure—Selis's fourth watcher who had left and now returned.

  Throughout the inn, three more figures stood. The “apprentices” straightened, as did the woman in the blue cloak, all positioning themselves between tables and exits.

  Mauldric's storm-brown eyes fixed on Selene. His hand rested on his dagger.

  Isadora stood beside him, dark gaze sweeping the room before settling on the corner table.

  The lead soldier turned, confused. "We've got orders from—"

  "Your orders are irrelevant," Isadora said quietly. "This is Circle business."

  "The Baron's authority—"

  "Doesn't extend to Athenaeum scholars." Mauldric stepped forward. "Professor Aldric is under our jurisdiction." His gaze never left Selene. "Step aside."

  The servant snorted. "Professor? Him? That ain't no professor. That's the soldier who—"

  "I said," Mauldric's tone dropped dangerously, "step aside."

  The lead soldier's hand found his sword. "You scholars think you can just wander in here and overrule the Baron's Guard?"

  Mauldric tilted his head, his expression one of polite boredom. "We don't think. We know. Now, lower your voice and your weapon, or you'll lose the hand that holds it."

  The insult landed like a slap. The soldier saw his men watching, waiting. He drew his blade fully, a snarl curling his lip. "That so? Let's see if your books bleed."

  He lunged with a ragged shout.

  Mauldric sidestepped as the incoming blade whistled past his shoulder. He caught the soldier’s wrist, twisting sharply. The weapon clattered to the floor.

  But the other soldiers were already moving.

  Two charged the Ardents from opposite sides. A third rushed the corner table.

  The watchers intercepted. The "apprentices" blocked the soldier heading for Selene.

  Chairs crashed. Tables overturned. Patrons scrambled for exits.

  The lead soldier recovered his blade, swinging for Mauldric's legs—

  Isadora's boot caught his ankle. He stumbled. She followed with an elbow to his jaw. He hit the floor hard.

  More soldiers pressed forward. The woman in blue cloak had been guarding the back door, but now a Baron's soldier engaged her directly, forcing her from her post.

  Selene's eyes swept the chaos.

  Her hand found Thena's wrist. "The back exit. When I say, run."

  "But—"

  "Trust me."

  Selis rose smoothly, her movements eerily certain despite her blindness.

  At the front, Mauldric blocked another strike, countering with a punch that doubled the soldier over. The watchers struggled, holding ground as furniture splintered.

  "Now!"

  Selene grabbed Thena's hand and pulled. They ran—Selene leading, Thena stumbling behind, reaching for Selis who followed close.

  The cloaked watcher tried to intercept but couldn't break free from combat.

  Selene barreled through the back door.

  Behind them, the chaos intensified. Mauldric's voice cut through: "The back! Don't let—"

  But another soldier's attack snapped his attention back.

  They burst through into the alley. Dusk light and cool air hit them as they stumbled out.

  The air hung heavy, charged with that electric pressure before thunder.

  Selene led, pulling Thena by the hand. Selis followed.

  Then—

  A chill swept through her. Not cold. Something else. Ice water in her veins. Her blood reacted, responding to something nearby.

  Her head turned slowly, involuntarily, to the left where the alley curved toward the inn's front.

  Five figures stood in shadow—three cloaked and hooded, barely visible. Two at the front.

  A young woman in lacquer-black vestments, crimson eyes fixed ahead with lethal focus.

  And beside her—

  Pale skin. Dark coat with silver filigree. Deep red eyes.

  Their gazes met.

  Lightning flashed—the world went white, casting stark shadows for one suspended heartbeat.

  In that moment, those crimson eyes locked with hers—with Aldric's weathered face—and he smiled. A small, knowing curve of his lips.

  Thunder cracked overhead, rolling through the valley like breaking stone.

  The moment shattered.

  "Stop them!"

  "Don't let them escape—"

  Voices faded as Selene pulled Thena forward toward the far end of the alley. Selis followed with quick steps.

  They ran through narrow passages, past shuttered windows and iron-banded doors, racing toward the bridge to Lowtown.

  They emerged onto the wider street leading to the river. The stone bridge arched ahead, dark with moisture from the coming storm.

  Behind them—hoofbeats approaching fast.

  "Run!"

  They hurried across the bridge, stone slick beneath their feet. The Arlen flowed dark below, swollen with mountain runoff.

  "Almost there!" Selene grabbed Thena's shoulder, pushing her toward the alleys of Lowtown on the other side.

  Dalen's horse thundered around the corner, mud flying from its hooves.

  He didn't slow down. He didn't swerve.

  Selene spun, trying to shove Thena behind her, but the angle was wrong. The horse cut between them, a wall of muscle and speed.

  The beast's flank slammed into Thena.

  The impact knocked the air from her lungs. She spun and hit the cobblestones hard, sprawling near the edge of the bridge.

  "Thena!"

  Dalen reined the horse in hard, pivoting the beast on its hind legs. Before Thena could scramble up, he leaned low from the saddle. His hand didn't swoop; it grabbed—fingers twisting into the back of her coat collar.

  He hauled upward with brutal strength.

  Thena screamed, her feet scrabbling uselessly against the stone before she was dragged up and thrown roughly across the saddle in front of him.

  Selene lunged forward, hand reaching out—

  Dalen kicked the horse. The beast reared, hooves flashing inches from Selene's face, forcing her back.

  Thena struggled, thrashing against his grip, but Dalen clamped an arm over her back, pinning her. His scarred face turned to Selene, eyes grim.

  "THENA!"

  "Don't." Dalen's voice carried across the bridge, hard and breathless. "You want her back? You know where to find me."

  He spurred the horse. It galloped toward the Baron's manor, Thena's cries fading into the storm.

  Selene stood frozen, chest heaving, staring at the empty road where her best friend—Aldric's daughter—had just been taken.

  Selis's hand found her arm. "We can't—"

  Behind them, shouts erupted. The Ardents. The watchers. Breaking free.

  "There! The bridge!"

  Ahead, more of the Baron's soldiers appeared from Lowtown's streets, drawn by the commotion, moving to cut them off.

  "The well," Selis said urgently. "The underground passages. It's our only way now. We disappear, then we get her back."

  Selene looked back once more, torn. The Ardents would reach the bridge in moments. The Baron's soldiers closed from ahead.

  Thunder cracked overhead.

  They had no choice.

  They ran into the maze of Lowtown's streets as rain began to fall, vanishing into the winding alleys before the gate could engage.

  The storm had arrived.